The Circle
by thir13enth
Summary: Hiatus. There are few cases and incidents happening around school. Will accidently overhears girls' conversation in the bathroom about an underground group. Could the school incidents be related to this group? And what happens when Will suddenly gets involved?


**Just another one of those random short stories I created some year back…I re-edited it…enjoy…**

**-Midori Fujiwara**

* * *

Will stared at their new science teacher, Mr. Walter-Hughes. He was about to give out the big test. _That_ big test. The last one of the grading term worth an infinite amount of grades and would ultimately determine if they passed the first grading period or not. The same one that everyone before had said was so difficult that they couldn't get through the first five pages actually understanding the question, and was also so difficult because none of them could get through less than two pages without falling asleep. The questions and text were so dense, the previous test takers said, that there had to be a thirty point curve to avoid everyone, even the geniuses, to fail.

Of course, that was all exaggeration. But hey, Will hadn't studied anything. How would she know the subject? The teacher probably didn't know a word of what he was teaching. After all, all his lecture notes were directly from the book.

But anyways, Mr. Walter-Hughes reached out for the padlock, and then dropped it suddenly, like a snake.

Will glanced around the room to see how her four friends were doing. Taranee was patiently waiting, her foot spiraling around under her desk in nervous anticipation. Hay Lin sat straight up in her seat, looking ready to tackle anything with her ultimate guessing skills. Cornelia sat with her legs crossed and one elbow on the table, holding up her head, just staring out the window. Irma was just as frantic as Will, no doubt she hadn't studied either. Irma caught Will looking back at her and smiled 'good luck'.

Will turned around again to look at the teacher, who was scowling and searching the room for what seemed like a criminal.

"Someone colored the padlock numbers black… and scratched out all the numbers before that," Mr. Walter-Hughes quietly, in a trained professional and restrained voice. Though it seemed at the moment he could yell louder than a megaphone could raise someone's voice. He tore up several sheets of paper; Will assumed he did this in the stress he was going through. "I can't open the lock, and I can't give out the test. Of course, I can impersonate the devil and give all of you failing grades this term, or you guys can, if you have any suspicion or know who did it, write the name of the guilty one down on the piece of the paper." He handed out the uneven and ripped pieces. "At least one person in this class should know who did it. Just write it down. Everything is confidential."

Will stared at the piece in front of her. She really didn't know who it was and left the paper blank. And to pass the rest of the time, she stared at the piece, wondering whether it looked more like a fish or more like a chicken.

Mr. Walter-Hughes came around and picked each paper up.

There was silence as he opened each one directly above the trash can. He threw all of them away one by one as he read them. Finished, he sighed. "The only response is a paper with a circle on it. What is this?"

No one answered, and the teacher couldn't analyze someone's handwriting by a simple circle so he couldn't question anymore, and shook his head disappointedly. He leaned over on his table, both arms propping himself up, both hands on the table. He was looking down, thinking.

There was a long period of silence.

Will had to go to the bathroom. Why now? Why did her bladder have to suddenly fill up at that moment when the teacher that teaches her worst subject was about to blow up in anger and shower down F's? But Will had been waiting quite a while: it really wasn't a good idea to drink so much juice during lunch today, and an even worse idea to sit through the whole lunch talking with Cornelia, Hay Lin, Taranee, and Irma instead of study or go to the bathroom before the test.

Will raised her hand and the teacher, expecting it to be a bathroom request, just waved a hand to the door without even looking up to see specifically who it was.

At least, she wouldn't have to experience any problems if there were going to be any while she was out.

She decided to take a long walk to the bathroom downstairs and down the hall. It wasn't the farthest bathroom, but the closest one was just the third left on this floor. She didn't want to come in too early either.

She flushed and was about to exit when suddenly a bunch of voices, a group of girls, entered the bathroom.

"Check!" a voice yelled, and Will instantly recognized the voice as one of the popular girl's voices. Adreline. Everyone wanted to be with her, talk with her. And she was basically, well, popular. The first day Will had come into the school, Will wanted to be her friend so badly, because if she was Adreline's friend, then she was everyone's friend.

But of course, Will had met Taranee, and that led to more matters.

But still, if Will had the offer to become Adreline's sidekick, she would gladly take it. What harm would more than four good friends do?

But Adreline's voice was extremely loud and warned at the moment, and Will, not sure what to do, sat back down on the toilet seat and propped her feet on the bathroom door.

There were plenty of footsteps, and plenty of long shadows moving across the bathroom floors. Doors opened and closed. She heard the door to the stall directly to the left of her slam open. Will held her breath. It was now for her door.

Her door, being locked of course, didn't open, and Will spotted a shadow partly squatting down to check for any feet in the stall.

It seemed like forever, and then the checker person moved on to the other stalls.

"That one's locked, but the others are all okay," a voice said.

"Okay, we're good," another one around.

"Clear," a third said at the same time. This voice Will recognized. It was Shay's voice. Will had talked with her occasionally before, but only about stuff like questions about how hard the test was, and whether there was any homework assigned or not. Shay sat to the right of Will.

"Okay, who killed the lock?" a voice asked.

So these were the criminals? Will's eyebrows furrowed and she listened in some more. What else could she do but listen in anyway? If she suddenly came out of the stall…what in the world would happen to her?

"I did," Adreline's voice said.

Woah! Will had expected someone in that group to have done it. But never did Adreline's name pass through Will's mind. Actually no name were passing through Will's mind, she was just in total shock at what she was experiencing, and how she would get out of the situation when all was over. And if she knew it was Adreline, and didn't tell the teacher…it would be like it was all her fault everyone got failing grades. But at the same time, she didn't want to be a tattletale. And then again, it wasn't like she ever minded being put out on the spot as the teller, but Will had never had some decision like this ever happen to her. Should she just wait, since all these other people that were with Adreline right now…shouldn't they tell the teacher? But no, these were probably Adreline's best friends. Otherwise she would never tell them so openly like that.

Then again, neither did Adreline know that Will was hiding in the locked stall.

"But who put down the whole circle thing?" Adreline's voice questioned.

"Remember? Don't do anything until picking day!" a voice said.

"Forget that, I just wouldn't pass this test," Adreline replied.

"Probably no one would, so why'd you do it?" Shay's voice asked.

"Just had to," Adreline said, "Maybe I felt like it."

"So if you did it independently, it wasn't even the Circle! So why would someone put it down in the first place?" an exasperated voice asked.

"Because they probably put it was one of the _people_ in the Circle," Adreline's cool voice said. It seemed she was the only one that was panicking.

"And all the teachers know the Circle will reform again. Last year they broke it up and expelled a few people, but we're still carrying it on. So now someone drew a circle and the school staff will find out all over again. It was bad enough last year!" a voice exclaimed. "Listen Adreline, just tell Mr. Walter-Hughes that you did it, otherwise the Circle will be broken up again, and this time, we'll be the ones expelled!"

"Don't worry, none of us are getting in trouble," Adreline continued in that cool voice that Will soon disliked. "I'm going to blame it on the new girl."

"What? You can't just do that!" several voices rose up, prominently Shay's voice.

"Don't get others involved in the mess. Just admit it for yourself," a voice disagreed.

"She doesn't have any cover. I don't think she has any friends that could back up her or something," Adreline explained. "Don't worry about it, because I have it all covered for myself."

Will froze. What?

"I mean, really now," Adreline added in.

Will softly put her feet on the tiles of the bathroom floor. She slowly pulled open the lock, sure not to make any metal clanging or squeaking sounds. Then she kicked the door out violently once Adreline finished talking.

"What did you say?" Will angrily asked.

Several long moments passed, it was hilarious seeing all the girls scared to death. She looked at them now: Adreline, Shay, Tammy, Marinda, and Kai.

Talking restored the next few moments.

"But how could you be in there?" Kai asked worriedly.

Will didn't bother asking the question. She made sure to keep eye to eye contact with Adreline.

"Please, please don't say anything about what you just heard!" Marinda pleaded.

Actually Will was so upset that she wasn't even thinking on that scope.

"I'm not," Will said, walking out of the bathroom. At least if anything happened, she knew who to talk to.

"If any of us get in trouble, we know who to put in trouble," Adreline said sternly.

So Will walked back to class.

Her ears were blocking every noise except her thoughts.

Finally, the members of the Circle, came back to class one by one.

But the science period wasn't over yet.

And Mr. Walter-Hughes was still mad as ever, putting the class under detention for the rest of the class, hoping that in still silence something would come out. How all the girls got the permission to go to the bathroom all at once was a miracle that Will couldn't figure out. Maybe the girls were somewhat akin with the teacher, an advantage that would play a key role when there was blame to be put somewhere.

Someone tossed a square sheet of paper next to her feet discreetly, sliding underneath her shoe.

Will just as discreetly picked it up.

_Sorry about that. They're all just bitches but they just don't want to get in trouble. Don't worry I got you covered if anything happens. –Shay_

Will looked over in Shay's direction. Shay was looking for Will's reaction. Will just nodded and then slipped the note into her pocket.

Another paper came in a few minutes later.

_The geography map looks like someone threw up on it._

Will glanced over at Shay's direction, smiling. Maybe this friendliness was somewhat of an apology. It wouldn't be surprising to Will if Shay really did end up being Will's friend just after all this chaos. Maybe not so much the others though. After all, Shay was the one Will talked to sometimes.

The Circle was a bit retarded. Who would do all that anyways? Maybe it was just one of those traditions that had to be continued because it was addicting. Stupid but addicting. Maybe just for people who were bored and took risks. And maybe it was for popularity, Will realized when connecting Adreline with this. Maybe the Circle was the key to gaining respect in this school. Maybe that's why it was reformed all the time.

Hm…

Will glanced over at Shay's direction, smiling. But Shay stared hard at her reading book.

Finally Will noticed a hand that was palm-up.

It was Mr. Walter-Hughes's hand, requesting the note.

Will placed it in his open hand, not wanting to piss him off even more. She saw Adreline eye her satisfactorily, seeming to say 'See, you're not the perfect student. It'll be all the easier to blame it on you'.

Will looked back up at Mr. Walter-Hughes's face, and he looked over at Shay, sitting nervous and uncomfortably. Mr. Walter-Hughes was pissed and sent them both directly to the principal's office.

Will and Shay submissively went out into the hallway.

"Have you even been in trouble?" Shay asked.

"Not exactly. Only once in the beginning of the school year," Will answered.

"Do you want to get in trouble again?"

"Not exactly."

"Didn't think so, let's just go outside and sit on one of the benches instead. Make up our own punishment. Maybe write a page about why proper conduct is mandatory or something. We'll turn it in maybe at the end of the day and tell Mr. Walter-Hughes that they made us write an essay. And they'll have the proof."

"You've done this many times haven't you?"

"Only the strongest will survive," Shay answered.

So they sat down outside, since they took their stuff with them in anticipation that the period would be over by the time the principal spoke to them. Which she wouldn't. But that wasn't the point.

They pulled out a piece of paper and bullshitted away.

"You know what I just realized?" Shay asked.

Will stayed quiet to give Shay the attention, not wanting to bring up the subject of the Circle.

"My house isn't that far. Maybe I'll go get a snack from the fridge or something."

Will laughed.

"No really," Shay smiled. She continued to smile, looking away for a second. "Hey, do you want to come over for a sleepover? It's the least I can do to apologize or something. Trust me, it'll be fun."

A sleepover? Sounded great.

But what purpose was this all really?

Shay defended herself, "I'm asking as a friend would ask another friend. Pretend that the whole Circle incident never happened. After all, my birthday's that day and I was planning to do it anyway."

"Oh so when is this?"

"Friday," Shay replied. "Today. Meet me right after school."

"Oh, wow! Um, happy birthday!" Will exclaimed. "I'll text my mom or something, to bring some clothes and all."

"Great, meet me at the front of the school? Where that red banner thing is?"

"Yeah," Will replied.

So this sleepover, she guessed, would be somewhat of a way to gain respect. Some way to meet new people.

Some way to apologize.

Some way to keep Will's mouth shut.

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**Hmmm...reads over re-edited version**

**Well drop by a review and tell me what you think!**

**-Midori Fujiwara**


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